thresher

[ thresh-er ]

noun

1. a person or thing that threshes.
2. Also Also called thresher shark. a large shark of the genus Alopias, especially A. vulpinus, which threshes the water with its long tail to drive together the small fish on which it feeds.

thresher

/ ˈθrɛʃə /

noun

1. a person who threshes
2. short for threshing machine
3. Also calledthrasherthresher shark any of various large sharks of the genus Alopias, esp A. vulpinus, occurring in tropical and temperate seas: family Alopiidae. They have a very long whiplike tail with which they are thought to round up the small fish on which they feed

Word History and Origins

Origin of thresher¹

First recorded in 1350–1400, thresher is from the Middle English word thressher. See thresh, -er ¹

Example Sentences

Farmers in the region were using a laborious process to separate plants’ seeds from their stems by hand, and Corrales helped them build a bike-powered thresher so that they could process crops such as maize and beans more quickly.

From MIT Technology Review

Almost every “fact” is wrung through an ideological thresher and pulverized.

From The Daily Beast

After Mr. Thresher's ministry closed amongst them, Mr. Woodward became the pastor.

From Project Gutenberg

Great care must be taken with this part of the thresher, or a great deal of grain will be carried into the straw.

From Project Gutenberg

Men began spewing out of the brawl like straw from a thresher as the old man grabbed arms, legs, or whatever was handy.

From Project Gutenberg

Combined harvester and thresher—Matteson, United States, 1886.

From Project Gutenberg

The sheds and the reaper and binder and thresher went just after, and the orchards and fences as well.

From Project Gutenberg